The University of Virginia earned top marks for quality, affordability and outcomes in new annual ratings released by Money Magazine on Thursday morning.
UVA is one of just 34 institutions nationwide to receive a five-star rating under the magazine’s new methodology for evaluating colleges and universities. Instead of ranking institutions from highest performing to lowest, as the magazine has done in the past, this year it rated institutions on a scale of zero to five stars based on how they perform on key metrics.
To compile the ratings, Money Magazine evaluated 736 institutions on 26 factors that span three categories: quality, affordability and outcomes. The change in approach is intended to offer a better window into the variety and diversity of high-value colleges and universities across the country. A full explanation of the new methodology is available on the magazine’s website.
In this year’s rating, Money Magazine praises UVA for offering “in-state students a top-notch education at a reasonable price,” and notes that the University “has the highest graduation rate of any public university in the country, at 94%.” Additional key factors in this year’s ratings were UVA’s average time to graduation (4.1 years) and graduates’ average starting salary ($80,600).
UVA’s top rating reflects the institution’s ongoing focus on offering students an education that is affordable and accessible and that prepares them to thrive after graduation. Consistently ranked as one of the top public institutions in the nation, the University is also just one of two public schools to meet 100% of its students’ demonstrated financial need.
UVA covers full tuition, fees, and room and board for in-state students whose families earn less than $30,000 a year and have typical assets, through its AccessUVA financial aid program. The University fully covers tuition and fees for students from Virginia families who earn less than $80,000 per year and have typical assets.
Money Magazine’s ratings follow The Princeton Review’s April announcement of its 2023 list of Best Value Colleges, where UVA rose to the No. 2 spot for the return students and their families receive on their investment in a UVA education. The University has also held the No. 1 spot for financial aid three years in a row. More on UVA’s placement on The Princeton Review’s charts was detailed in UVA Today.
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April 27, 2024
